Hand-service tools for effecting assembly and disassembly of components have a wide variety of shapes, sizes and uses. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,374 by Coler discloses a tool having a double handle and a wedge-clamping arrangement for effecting either removal of a housing from or installation of a housing to a pair of electric contact members of a circuit board The tool includes a forwardly-disposed wedge for initially- separating the pair of contact members. A pair of pivotally and resiliently-mounted clamping elements are provided such that the wedge is interposed therebetween. One handle supports the wedge and the pair of clamping elements while the other handle is pivotally mounted and has a camshaped end for controlling the opening and closing of the clamping elements. When the tool is placed over the housing, the wedge separates the contact members, and the other handle is then actuated to grip and remove the housing in an axial direction without causing abrasive injury to the surfaces of the contact member Conversely, the tool can also assemble a housing onto a pair of contact members.
In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,736 by Fieburg et al. concerns a manual tool for selectively inserting or removing electric leads from a multi-lead connector plug. The tool comprises a hand-grippable tool body which has a finger-actuatable spring-biased slider. The outer end of the slider includes a movable, finger-like jaw, the transverse section of which is in the shape of a semicircle. An opposed jaw also of semicircle configuration affixes to the tool body. The two jaws are used to grip an electric-insulated lead. One or more leads are then readily installed in or removed from their associated pin connection to an elastomeric plug by virtue of the elongated extent of the movable jaw combined with the maneuverability of the tool in close or immediate proximity to the plug.
Yet another example of the prior art is U.S. S.I. Reg. No. H226 by Willett, which discloses a manually-operable and remotely-controlled tool for selectively removing or installing connector ends of a clustered arrangement of interconnected cables of an electric terminal assembly. The tool is generally made up of a hub and opposed jaws. One end of an elongated sleeve is affixed to the hub while the other end is connected to a handle. The shaft is rotatably disposed in the sleeve with one end of the shaft affixed to a cam and the other end to a second handle that is freely disposed in an aperture of the first handle. During tool use, the user grasps both handles and maneuvers the hub and jaw among a clustered group of cables on one side of an electric terminal assembly having a plurality of interconnected cables. The user then positions the jaws of the tool over a selected cable from the group. Next, the tool is moved along the path of the cable until the jaws are over the connector end of the selected cable. The user then rotates the second handle to secure the socket end between the jaws and the cam. The tool is moved in an axial or a rotational direction to install or remove the selected socket ends of the interconnected cable.
Despite the multitude of tools available among the prior art, advancing technology, particularly in the electric and electronic industry, has created new problems that render prior servicing tools ineffective. For example, in the area of electric terminal assemblies for interfacing and interconnecting various components of one or more networks, a series of connections of different sizes is frequently required. Because limited space is available, this series of different-sized connections is normally arranged in a close-clustered relationship. Further, conditions of terminal use require a positive snap-lock connection for maintaining electrical contact. This clustered arrangement of the connectors together with their snap-lock design renders difficulty during both installation and removal of these connectors. Further, only the prior art of Willett recognizes the importance of an elongated, unitized tool for remote axial or rotatable control and for selective access into a clustered arrangement of interconnected, different-size cables. The wrench disclosed in Willett, however, has welded construction which hinders disassembly and interchangeability of parts. Further, the elliptical shape of the opening between the opposing jaws of the wrench in Willett prevents engaging an electrical connector from the side of the connector. Instead, the Willett tool requires that the wrench be placed over the cable and then moved forward over the electrical connector. However, the design of many connectors, having enlarged butt ends, precludes sliding the wrench onto the connector from the cable attachment end. As a result, the Willett tool is unusable with this type of connector. Given these increasingly complex multiple and different-sized cable terminal interconnections, the limited access to these connections, and the snap-lock design, an improved elongated and remotely-operated wrench is needed to service these cable interconnections.